60 Huskers Earn Diplomas Saturday

Lincoln - A talented collection of 60 University of Nebraska student-athletes, which includes 11 individual All-Americans across NU’s men’s and women’s athletic programs, graduated during spring commencement ceremonies on Saturday at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

The Husker graduating class, which was made up of student-athletes from 18 U.S. states and four foreign countries, was one of the largest in recent memory from the Nebraska Athletic Department and featured representatives from nearly all of the Huskers’ 23 varsity programs. The Nebraska football team produced 14 graduates, while the men’s and women’s track and field/cross country programs added 13 graduates. The Husker baseball team added six graduates to the list, including four players (Jeremy Becker, Jesse Boyer, Curtis Ledbetter, Dustin Timm) who are participating in NU’s weekend baseball series at Hawks Field with Missouri. Two former Husker baseball players (Justin Cowan, John Grose) also earned their diplomas on Saturday.

Six men’s track and field student-athletes who graduated on Saturday (Jesse Colburn, Kyle Doperalski, Kyle Goerl, Nenad Loncar, Tim Williams, Paul Wilson) also competed later in the day at the Nebraska Invitational at the Ed Weir Outdoor Track and Field Stadium. Three former men’s track athletes (Eric Eshbach, Kevin Johnson, Brad Teeple), also earned their degrees, along with four former women’s track standouts (Authea Chambers, Ineta Radevica, Na’Tassia Vice, Michele Witter).

The Nebraska football program’s 14-player graduating class included Dan Burrow, Sandro DeAngelis, Mike Erickson, Jared Helming, Joel Jackson, Dusty Keiser, Mike McLaughlin, Lornell McPherson, Jack O’Holleran, Barrett Ruud, Benard Thomas, Kiffin Wigert, Delrick Williams and Ben Zajicek.

Wrestling (Jason High, Nathan McClain, Dusty Spaulding, B.J. Wright), women’s gymnastics (Gina Bruce, Tiffany Byrd, Tami Harris, Richelle Simpson), women’s basketball (Jina Johansen, Katie Morse, Lacey Hanson), softball (Peaches James, Nicole Trimboli, Brittney Yolo), men’s gymnastics (Jeff Kelly, Josh Koopman), women’s tennis (Katie Garcia, Stacey Tomkiewicz), men’s basketball (Jake Muhleisen), volleyball (Anna Schrad), women’s golf (Stephanie Schaefer), men’s tennis (Ryan Jay), women’s bowling (Shannon Pluhowsky) and rifle (Laura Johnson) were also represented during Saturday’s graduation ceremony. The former men’s swimming and diving program also contributed two student-athletes (Barrett Brandon, Steven Wiltgen) to the Class of 2005.

Along with its impressive size, the 60-member graduating class also featured illustrious individual and team accomplishments among its graduates, who combined to win 40 All-America awards, nine individual national titles and two national team titles at NU.

Nebraska Associate Athletic Director for Academic Programs and Student Services Dennis Leblanc said the May 2005 graduating class consists of strong examples of student-athletes who have the ability to excel in the classroom, in the community and in competition.

"I truly admire each one of these Nebraska student-athletes for the way they have balanced school with competition," Leblanc said. "These 60 graduates add to Nebraska’s tradition of student-athletes performing at the highest level in academics and athletics. This is a special group of people who came from all across the globe to get an education and represent the University of Nebraska in their sport. The athletic department, the University and the entire state of Nebraska should be proud."

The seven female All-Americans in the graduating class combined for a staggering 32 All-America certificates and five individual national titles, while also earning outstanding classroom accomplishments. Senior women’s gymnast Richelle Simpson certainly did her share to bring glory to the graduating class. A nine-time All-American and the 2003 NCAA all-around and floor exercise champion, Simpson was named the 2005 Nebraska Female Student-Athlete of the Year in April. A three-time NACGC Scholastic All-American, Simpson also earned a prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship in late-April, after becoming Nebraska’s first-ever recipient of the AAI American Award, one of the top honors in collegiate gymnastics.

Simpson was not alone in representing the women’s gymnastics program, as four-time All-American Tami Harris and two-time All-American Gina Bruce joined Simpson and Tiffany Byrd in graduation ceremonies.

While the women’s gymnastics team carried 15 All-America awards across the graduation platform, the women’s track and field team was nearly as successful. Former Huskers Ineta Radevica and Na’Tassia Vice combined for 13 All-America awards and a trio of national titles, highlighted by Radevica’s 11 All-America certificates and three crowns during her time at Nebraska.

Three-time All-America soccer player Christine Latham, All-America pitcher Peaches James and bowler Shannon Pluhowsky round out an impressive list of athletic accomplishments claimed by the female graduates. Pluhowsky was a three-time U.S. Amateur champion, was the MVP of the 2004 NCAA Championships and led the Huskers to the first two NCAA bowling titles in history.

Former Husker volleyball standout Anna Schrad contributed CoSIDA Academic All-America recognition during her time at Nebraska, providing an even longer list of national caliber accomplishments to the group.

On the men’s side, the four All-Americans combined for eight All-America awards and one national championship, led by men’s track and field student-athlete Eric Eshbach, who was a five-time All-American and a national champion as a pole vaulter. Another Husker pole vaulter, Brad Teeple, added an All-America award of his own. Former Husker and professional baseball player Justin Cowan also produced impressive athletic accomplishments before earning his bachelor’s degree from Nebraska, along with All-America linebacker Barrett Ruud, who was chosen in the second round of the 2005 NFL Draft.

In addition to Ruud, other Husker football players who signed contracts with NFL teams for the coming year before earning their diplomas include Mike Erickson, Lornell McPherson and Benard Thomas. A fifth Husker football player, Jared Helming, earned his bachelor’s degree on Saturday and will play the 2005 season with his degree in hand.

Senior Katie Garcia, a Lincoln native who helped the Nebraska women’s tennis team make history by earning its first-ever trip to the NCAA Tournament earlier in the week, also earned her degree on Saturday.

The spring graduating class of 60 is added to the December class of 28 graduates to bring the total number of Husker student-athletes graduating during the 2004-05 academic year to 88. Nebraska continues to feature one of the highest graduation rates in the nation with an exhausted eligibility graduation rate of 91 percent.